4: Remo, skin

Seventh hour (13:01)

“Ah Remo, perfect timing. Meet Tita from Gergovia. She is Claudia’s cousin.” Elena said.

“Hello miss.” Tita saw Remo was a short, stocky younger boy, maybe ten or eleven, wearing a short tunic. A small tablet was strapped with leather cords to his chest and to his tunic belt, while a leather pouch was secured to his tunic belt, which Tita guessed was for water.

Remo only glanced at Tita, instead staring up at Elena with a bit of rapture and a foolish smile as he breathed heavily. Apparently he had run to the tavern.

“Hello Remo,” said Tita, but Remo seemed not to notice, as he wiped his forehead of sweat and dried his hand on his tunic. He took the jar of water and sipped the water, letting out a big ‘aah’ and then wiping his mouth.

“Prosilio took a while to find you,” noted Elena. “Did he meet his friend Ennius and place a bet?” Elena looked at Tita. “The gladiator fights at the arena.” Tita understood and nodded, imagining young teenage boys would be ardent fans of gladiators.

Remo nodded vigorously. “Yes maestra. Licinius ‘The Great’ is fighting! He is the best! But Ennius made Prosilio place a bet.” As he spoke, Remo loosened his pouch to pour water into it, then secured it again to his belt and continued talking to Elena.

“Ennius wanted me to stay and be an arbiter in case it was a tie. But Ennius is a fool. There is no way it can be a tie with Licinius. Licinius is awesome. But Ennius insisted and- you know. He is a catamite for two guards at the arena. So we got to sneak in for a few moments and watch the fight.” Remo giggled mischievously. “But I told Prosilio I could not stay because you had called me and neither should he because he still had to get lamb for Lucius. But he already got wheat flour for Lucius.” Remo grinned sheepishly.

Elena smiled, “Thank you Remo. It is good you reminded Prosilio of his duties. But be careful at the arena. You know they can be a bit strict about cheaters.”

“Yes maestra. But they know Ennius-”

“Yes I know he is favored. But a new guard, captain or someone of political rank might see that you cheated and complain to the guards. And then Aurelia has to deal with it and you do not want to upset Aurelia, correct?”

Remo looked down with shame. “No maestra,” he said quietly.

“You know she cares for you very much, as do I. We do not want you to get hurt or be taken advantage of by others behaving foolishly. The next time Ennius wants to do this, tell him that you will only do things properly and not tempt fate. Do you promise?”

“Yes maestra,” said Remo even more quietly, still looking down. Tita felt sorry for Remo, noting that Elena’s quiet but steady tone and her gentle way of admonishing was very effective. Tita hoped she would not cause Elena to admonish her frequently.

The water clock chimed differently and Tita guessed it was signaling the eighth hour.

Elena smiled and tousled Remo’s hair. “Come, that is your lesson for today. Now, tell me.  How are the appointments from the arena?”

Remo looked up and grinned, newly confident. “Today is very good! We have ten men and one woman coming so far! Four for Erminia, three for Diana, two for Silvia and one for Lydia and the woman is for Cassia. The earliest is Fabius for Erminia at the ninth hour. Here is the list so far!” Remo loosened the leather cords and pulled out the folded wax tablet, handing it to Elena. Elena opened the tablet and quickly scanned it.

“Very good Remo. These are confirmed?”

Remo grinned even more. “Yes maestra! Here are the deposits!” Remo pulled up his tunic sleeve and undid the knots on a small arm purse, which he gave to Elena. “A denarius for every hour confirmed! Two confirmed for two hours and one for three.”

Elena emptied the purse in her hand, and indeed there were fifteen denarii. She handed the money to Tacitus, who suddenly broke form to loosen a pouch on his belt and slip the coins in. He tightened the pouch, assumed his position and winked with approval at Remo. Remo briefly smiled and stood rigidly, puffing his chest out and saluting Tacitus, who gave him a quick smile.

“Excellent Remo. You are doing well!” Elena handed the empty purse back to Remo, who smiled grandly with confidence again.

“Thank you maestra! But it is easy. Everyone likes the girls!” He retied the purse to his arm. Elena handed him the tablet as well. Remo slipped the tablet in the leather cords and tightened them to his chest. Then he stood at attention, gazing at Elena.

“Also, two men asked for Vipsania, but I told them she would be in tomorrow at the eighth hour instead of today, like you told me. And three men asked for Nebius in a group, but I saw right away they were just pretenders. When I told them she is a queen and she charges two aureus per hour for each one, they thought I was lying. So I told them to tell that to Tacitus and they hurried away like rabbits!” Remo chuckled.

“Also a man named Salvenius wants to see you- he said he knows you. He is a promoter! But I told him like you said, to see Aurelia since today you were busy. And Baebius was asking for Rubria but I told him he had to see Aurelia. And there were a few other pretenders but I knew they would just try to avoid paying, so I told them we were fully booked!” Remo spoke forcefully, proud of his memory and how he dispensed with the potential cheaters. Remo smiled enthusiastically and Tita tried to keep from giggling at Remo’s obvious devotion for Elena.

“Excellent Remo. You did very well. And when will Prosilio be back?” Elena asked.

“He said he would be here in half an hour, maestra. Licinus’s fight was almost over and he was already the victor. Prosilio will run to the market to get the lamb meat.”

“Good. Now, I need you to run to Aurelia and show her the tablet and tell her about the others and I also need you to deliver this message from me. I am taking Tita to meet the Bactrian dance troupe. We will come to the villa later. Then I can let Aurelia know what kind of arrangements we should make for the Bactrians.”

“Yes maestra. I will run fast!” Remo started to bolt away.

“Wait!” said Elena strongly, quickly grasping Remo’s arm with notable speed.

Remo turned around, looking at Elena with surprise and guilt.

“Also, please take Tita’s satchels to Aurelia.” Elena smiled, pointing to the floor.

Remo looked down and picked up Tita’s satchels from the floor. He draped them over his neck and shoulders. Seeing that the satchels hung very loosely, he shook his head and took them off and passed both straps over his head and arms, then flipped the satchels on his back, so that the straps passed under his armpits and over his shoulders. He saw the leather straps were still loose and made a face. He took them off again and looped one of the straps, then passed one arm through the loop, again arranging the satchel as before on his back. Now the leather strap was tight around his chest, and the satchel stayed in place on his back. He clucked and nodded to himself, and he did the same with the other satchel, looping the strap on his other arm.

Tita was fascinated by Remo’s ingenuity. “I wish I had known to do that six weeks ago!” she exclaimed. “You are a very clever!”

Remo looked at her, grinning. “Thank you, madam!” He paused to look at her face with wonder, rather than with fear as most people expressed. Tita smiled at Remo’s genuine curiosity. She took Remo’s hand and put his hand on her face so he could feel her skin.

“It is smooth!” he exclaimed.

“Yes,” Tita said, smiling.

“The spots do not hurt?” Remo continued caressing Tita’s cheek.

“No. Never.”

“Wow. You are super smooth. But you look like a leopard!” He exclaimed boldly. “Are you strong like a leopard? Do you growl like a leopard?” His dark brown eyes twinkled with excitement and mirth.

Tita made a face and claws with her hands, then hissed and growled deeply.

Remo stepped back in mild shock. “Jupiter! You are a leopard girl!”

Tita laughed heartily. She took Remo’s hand and kissed his palm very delicately. “Thank you very much for the compliment.” Remo grinned broadly, giggling.

Elena tousled Remo’s hair again and smiled at him in an endearing way.

“Tita, Remo is very honest. He will guard your belongings with his life. Correct Remo?”

Remo snapped to attention towards Elena. “Yes maestra! I have my dagger!” He pointed to the small pugio at his side.

“Excellent. So you do not need to worry about your valuables.” Elena looked at Tita, grinning.

“Certainly. Thank you Remo,” said Tita, smiling at Remo’s enthusiasm. “Thank you very, very much.”

“I am fast. Do not worry!” said Remo, smiling. He adjusted the leather straps on his back to tie down the bottom corners of Tita’s satchels, so they stayed pressed to his back.

Elena continued. “Make sure you deliver my message and Tita’s satchels only to Aurelia. Do you remember the message?”

“Yes maestra. You will take Tita to meet the Bactrian dancers and then you will come to the villa later to tell Aurelia what arrangements to make for them.” Remo enunciated this with great pride.

“Excellent. Once you deliver the message and satchels, be sure to run right back here and help Lucius. Remember, we should not leave Lucius by himself for a long time. Then when Prosilio returns, you can go back to the arena and stay until the end of the last game at sunset. And then you can come here to give Tacitus any coins and show him the tablet. Then you can go to the villa and show the tablet to Aurelia or Lucretia and tell them about any other requests. Also you will probably need to get Catilius for Caecilia later this afternoon. If you see him at the villa, let him know he may need to come to the tavern later, since I will not be here… Do you remember all this?”

“Oh yes, maestra. Yes.” Remo stood straight at attention to reinforce his conviction.

Elena smiled. “Good. Now you can run.”

“Thank you, maestra. I will run very, very fast!” Remo smiled, turned and ran out of the tavern without saying good-bye. Tita noticed he ran past the window next to Elena’s table.

Tita and Elena laughed at Remo’s enthusiasm to do favors for Elena.

“You have many admirers,” noted Tita, still chuckling.

Elena smiled. “At Remo’s age, the admiration is very adorable. It is funny, but very sweet… And it seems he admires you as well.”

Tita giggled. “He is cute and very clever. But my satchels are a bit heavy. He will be okay?”

“He will be fine. Do not worry. Come. Let us go meet your dear friends.” As Elena stepped next to Tita, the citrus scent from Elena’s skin was even stronger. Tita loved the intoxicating scent. It drove her wild. She cleared her throat, realizing she was absently staring at Elena’s bosom.

“Ahem… Where is Aurelia’s villa?” Tita asked, keeping her eyes on Elena’s eyes.

“It is about an hour’s walk from here east of the city, about three mille passus.”

“Oh, it is a little far… Even for poor Remo.”

“Do not worry. He has carried heavier things. And at this hour with the hot, bright sun, the road will be empty. And Remo is quick on his feet. For you and the others, you should always have protection when walking from or to the villa, especially at night. Tacitus or one of the other bodyguards will accompany you. It is Aurelia’s first rule.”

“How many bodyguards does she have?”

“Currently five, plus Tacitus. Another two are currently being evaluated.”

Tita nodded. “And you manage things also for Aurelia?”

“Naturally. We have a few managers. Lucretia is the main scheduler. She is gruff and precise, but you will get used to her. Domitia and Justinia also help. Normally, Aurelia stays here to coordinate tavern activities. But since we were waiting for you to arrive at the tavern, Aurelia recommended that I stay here to meet you first.”

“Why did Aurelia want to do that?” Tita asked, genuinely curious.

“Aurelia and I discussed the possibility that your dancing friends might be in Pompeii today. Aurelia and I were in agreement that it would be good if I met them, to learn about you from their perspective and how your journey went with them. And also to see if your friends might be travelling back to Rome later or if they were staying in Pompeii for a few days.

“And mostly because Aurelia wants to start your training right away. Aurelia is anxious to make sure you receive good training so you can get to work quickly. Aurelia has high hopes for you because your cousin Claudia constantly promoted you to Aurelia…” Elena smiled. “So you can thank Claudia for all the attention you will receive.” Elena laughed and Tita smiled, feeling a little intimidated.

“Thank you, maestra. I hope to meet your expectations.”

Elena smiled and took Tita’s hands. “I am confident you will.” Elena paused to look at the large dark freckles on Tita’s arms and face. Tita realized she had not covered her face with her shawl. “Your freckles are generally like this?” Elena asked, looking at Tita steadily.

Tita turned red. “Yes,” she said quietly, as she covered her mouth and nose with her shawl again. “I have them everywhere, except the bottom of my feet and the palm of my hands.”

“Good! They are quite lovely! I know you hate your skin, and you wish you were like everyone else. But you have been given a gift from the gods. You think it is a curse because your skin makes you look different. And I know from Claudia that many have commented negatively on your freckles, or with disgust, or with fear that you have a type of leprosy. But those are all foolish comments. They do not reflect the true value of your skin or your value as a beautiful young woman.

“There is nothing wrong in being different. We are all a little different. You have light skin; I have dark skin. You have spots; I do not. Tacitus has dark brown skin. We have two girls who have very black skin, so black it is almost blue-“

“Really?” interrupted Tita. “They must look very beautiful!”

“They are very beautiful. Now, most women have skin color ranging from tan to white, like your skin. Some skin is dry, or oily, or smooth, or rough, or wrinkled. Some skin has spots, or pimples or blemishes or birth stains. There is a great variety of skin, just like animal hide has an infinite variety of colors, hairs or textures. Some insects are green or yellow or red or brown or black. And as you well know, skin changes as you get older. So skin is a dynamic characteristic. Do you know, there are some people who are completely white and have no skin or hair color at all?”

“Really?” asked Tita, amazed.

“Yes. It is a rare condition, but it can happen. And it is fine. Such differences in skin color do not mean leprosy. So ignore and forget those hasty judgments. Do not give those negative comments any value. Let them fall off you like dust. Remember you always have a choice in how you let words affect you. You should only value comments when they offer value to you. You know the true value of your health, your body and yourself. Your gift makes you more memorable. Eventually you will learn to love your skin.”

“Thank you…” Tita did not know what else to say, feeling embarrassed, annoyed, intrigued and in awe of Elena’s wisdom and her faith in Tita.

“Oh, do not thank me. Thank your parents. And thank yourself,” said Elena with a grin.

Tita smiled at the small joke. Elena turned to pick up a leather pouch on the bench where she had been sitting. She slung the pouch over her neck and shoulder, so that it hung in front of her.

“Water,” explained Elena. “At the villa, you will be given one of these for yourself.”

“Thank you.”

“It is necessary here, especially in the summer. Come. Tacitus, we will see you tonight. Take good care.”

“Good bye, Tacitus.” said Tita meekly, slightly waving to him.

Tacitus gently growled and Tita sensed he could be much warmer and gentler than he appeared.